6.5 Quake Shakes Buildings on California Coast

FRESNO, Calif – A 6.5 magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of Northern California Saturday afternoon, shaking buildings south of the Oregon border and knocking out power in several coastal communities.

The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake hit at about 4:27 p.m. about 27 miles from Eureka, a city of about 26,000. No injuries have been reported.

Pacific Gas & Electric Co. spokesman J.D. Guidi said power outages were widespread across most of Humboldt County, affecting about 25,000 customers.

"People have chimneys down, and we're hearing about minor property damage and lots of glassware broken," Wattle said. "People are really shaken up. It was shaking pretty good, then it had a big jolt to it at the end."

Police in Ferndale, the community closest to the quake's epicenter, said the jolt caused stucco to fall off City Hall and broke shop windows, strewing the historic downtown streets with glass shards.

"I thought a tire had blown off my truck because it was so hard to keep control of the vehicle," Officer Lindsey Frank said. "Power lines were swaying, and I could see people in the fields trying to keep their balance."

Televisions tumbled and objects were knocked off walls in Arcata, a small town that's home to Humboldt State University, one resident said.

"The whole town is kind of freaked out right now," said Judd Starks, the kitchen manager at a bar and restaurant known as The Alibi. "All the power is out, people are out walking around."

The quake was felt as far south as Capitola in central California, and as far north as central Oregon, USGS geophysicist Richard Buckmaster said.

Arcata and Eureka are located about 270 miles north of San Francisco in a coastal area known for periodic earthquakes. In 1964 a tsunami washed away 11 people in Crescent City, 90 miles to the north of Eureka. It is the only tsunami to take lives in the continental United States.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said there was no threat of the quake generating a tsunami.

According to the USGS, the quake hit at a depth of nearly 10 miles. Five aftershocks followed in the 90 minutes after the quake, the biggest registering at a magnitude of 3.8. The San Francisco Bay area was struck by two light earthquakes on Thursday and Friday.

There is a small chance — 5 to 10 percent — of another magnitude-6.5 temblor or larger hitting the area over the next week, but the odds dramatically decrease as time passes, the USGS said.

There's also a 78 percent chance of a strong and potentially damaging aftershock magnitude-5 or larger over the same period. The earthquake probabilities are based on statistical observations of past earthquakes in California and are not predictions, the USGS said.

Dan Bowermaster of San Francisco was with relatives in Eureka when the quake hit. He said he had been in several moderate and large quakes throughout California but had never felt anything as big or dramatic as this one.

"It was extremely unsettling, it was shaking in kind of a circular way," he said by phone.

Sandra Hall, owner of Antiques and Goodies in Eureka, said furniture fell over, nearly all her lamps broke and the handful of customers in her store got a big scare. She said it was the most dramatic quake in the 30 years the store has been open.

"We'll be having a sale on broken china for those who like to do mosaics," she said.